5 Features We Need To See in iOS 8

iOS 7 is known for being the biggest change to Apple’s mobile operating system to date. Along with a complete redesign, Apple also added many long needed features to iOS 7, such as the Control Center, allowing you to access device functions extremely quickly. While the features that Apple added to iOS 7 are great, there are still many improvements that we will hopefully see with the release of iOS 8.

1. Widgets For iOS 8

We said it before iOS 7, and we’re saying it again. Although Apple brought us one step closer with the addition of the notification center, we still are no where close to having the convenient widgets that are available on other smartphones available on the market.

Apple has been contemplating adding true widgets for a long time. However, for the same reason iOS devices do not support flash, Apple has been reluctant to add widgets due to battery life issues. It’s a commonly known fact: widgets use up a lot of the battery. But hey, if we’re willing to deal with that, why not give us the option with iOS 8? We can always turn them off anyway if they become more of an issue than they are worth.

2. Apple’s Applications

Chances are, you do not use every application that comes pre-loaded with iOS. Although some people may find use in different apps that Apple bundles with their software, many people do not (heck, I can’t even remember the last time I used Newsstand!) Why Apple, must you prevent us from deleting your apps that we do not use? Why must we keep Compass and Newsstand? What benefit does the Stocks application have to a non-investor?

It doesn’t make much sense to restrict us from deleting the applications we don’t use. It wouldn’t hurt Apple in the slightest, and would make users much happier.

And why aren’t we given the ability to change our default applications? I get it Apple, you want people to use your software. Unfortunately, not everybody wants to, especially when there are much better alternatives available on the App Store. Why can’t we have all of our links open in Chrome, or Dolphin? Why can’t we use Sparrow as our default mail application? And forcing us to use Apple Maps? Why restrict us, Apple?

Hopefully these restrictions will be lifted in iOS 8, and we can be free to use the device as we see fit.

3. Improve Default Applications

Speaking of Apple’s applications, the ones that come preloaded on iOS could be vastly improved. Despite many improvements, Apple Maps still needs a lot of improvements (mostly in accuracy, it has a tendency to suggest strange routes to places).

And what about Siri? Many people were very hyped for Siri, only to be let down when it did not meet their expectations. Siri has great potential, no doubt, but the lack of useful features or integration with native applications is a huge let down. Hopefully Siri will be made a bit more useful with iOS 8.

4. Developers – Requirements And Options

If you’ve ever used the Google Play store before, you’ll notice that many apps run very poorly. This is because there are so many different devices that run Android, its hard for developers to optimize and design their application for each device.

On the contrary, Apple’s App Store has always been the opposite. There were only a few screen sizes and resolutions developers had to worry about, and most apps would run fine on all devices.

That was, until the iPhone 5 came out. Ever since, it’s always been a hit or miss for new applications coming out on the App Store. Is the new app optimized for the smaller screen sizes? What about the smaller screen resolutions? Is this iPad app made for my iPad Mini? The questions can go on and on.

The App Store has so many requirements for developers to have their app published, and this is exactly why the quality of applications on the App Store has remained so high. However, the bar should be set even higher. Developers should have to have their application designed for each screen size that comes out. After all, there are only a few.

However, developers should get improvements to their job as well. After all, they are the ones that make the App Store what it is. As a developer, your pricing options for the apps you release are very limited. You can set a price, or you can make it free. In certain cases, you can run a recurring subscription. That’s pretty much it. But why not more?

Developers want to make money, but at the same time they want to make great products that the users like you and me will enjoy. Why not give them options to encourage that?

Right now, the App store is dominated by horrible, horrible freemium games. It is after all, the best way for developers to make money at the moment. But what if they had the option to give out trials of the game before prompting the user to purchase it? This would encourage less free apps. Or how about the option to charge for major updates? This would at least force quality out of developers if they want to continue making money. More money for developers means more money for Apple, and better apps for consumers.

5. iOS 8 Must Be Optimized

Imagine if all of the above features would added. That would be great, right? Exactly what we wanted. The only thing is, if iOS 8 were poorly optimized, all of it would mean nothing.

Above all of these things, we have standards for our smartphones. We expect them to be able to run, and run smoothly. We don’t want the battery dying shortly after charging it. We don’t want iOS freezing and crashing. We don’t want our devices to be slow because they weren’t optimized correctly.

iOS 7 wasn’t optimized as well as it should be. Battery life decreased for many users after updating from iOS 6, and many users report their devices becoming significantly slower after updating. iOS 8 must improve upon the optimization issues introduced with iOS 8 in order to provide the high quality experience we’ve become used to with Apple and iOS.

Your Suggestions?

The list certainly doesn’t end here. What do you think are iOS 8’s most needed features? How would you improve iOS to make the perfect user experience? Let us know by leaving a comment. We’d love to hear from you!

Want to learn how to make thousands of dollars of passive income in the App Store?

My friend Mike over at App Dev Secrets just released his new, fool-proof course that teaches you how to make amazing iPhone or iPad applications and games! Best of all, you need zero programming knowledge whatoever to get started!

If you've ever dreamed of having your own apps and games make thousands every month, head on over to Mike's website and check it out!